Föreläsningar och seminarier Gästseminarium: Rita Cersosimo
A Pedagogical Program for Using Robotics to Promote Social Communication Skills in Autism Spectrum Disorder
Rita Cersosimo
University of Genoa
Abstract
The talk presents a research project which is funded by the Italian Foundation for Autism and conducted at the University of Genoa.
It investigates how social robots can support the communication and social skills of autistic students from preschool to secondary school. Studies have shown that robots such as Buddy, Nao and Navel - used in the project - can often engage students with ASD more easily than human partners, acting as mediators in social situations.
The program begins with a familiarization phase in the students’ usual rehabilitation environment, guided by therapists and educators. It then moves to short sessions where the robot plays games, presents social scenarios and suggests appropriate responses, using “social stories” to illustrate how to behave in different contexts. The content is adapted to the age of participants, focusing on emotion recognition for younger children, emotions and communication for middle school students, and preparation for life after school for older students.
The final phase repeats the activities in the school setting, gradually involving more peers until the whole class participates, fostering inclusion within Italy’s mainstream education system.